208 



MB. J. BALL OS THE FLOBA OF NOBTH PATAGONIA 



too short to allow of the development of a rich and varied flora. 

 "We are apt, I think, to underrate the extreme slowness of the 

 operation of the agencies that modify the forms of vegetation 

 and the fact that change in arboreal vegetation must, other 

 things being the same, proceed much more slowly than with 

 herbaceous, especially annual, plants. How many of the plants 

 found in fossil Miocene deposits, enormously more ancient than 

 the commencement of the Patagonian flora, are more than slightly 

 modified forms of existing species ? 



Although the collection at my disposal gives a very incomplete 

 view of the flora of North Patagonia, there may be a little interest 

 in comparing the proportion borne by the chief natural orders 

 to the whole known flora in this as compared with the flora of 

 the Argentine region as made known by Grisebach's ' Symbolse.' 



Table showing the Proportional Number of Species belonging to the 

 chief Natural Orders in the North-Patagonian and Argentine 

 Floras. 



Natural Orders. 



North Patagonia. 



Argentine. 



No. of Percent, on 

 species, whole flora. 



No. of 

 species. 



Percent, on 

 whole flora 



Caryophylleae 



4 

 3 

 

 5 



8 

 7 



1 

 4 

 4 

 1 



36 

 1 

 

 9 

 5 

 1 

 7 

 7 

 8 

 5 

 

 1 

 2 

 1 

 5 



30 

 6 



20 

 1-5 







26 



4-1 



36 



05 



20 



20 



0-5 



18-65 

 05 

 



46 

 26 

 0-5 

 36 

 36 

 41 

 2-6 

 



0-5 

 10 

 05 

 2-6 



155 

 31 



21 

 30 

 51 

 31 



174 

 14 

 25 

 11 

 38 

 39 



377 

 38 

 44 

 95 

 33 

 33 

 43 

 37 

 19 

 19 

 76 

 22 

 22 

 26 

 66 



187 

 66 



09 

 135 

 2-25 

 1-4 

 7-7 

 06 

 11 

 05 

 1-7 

 17 

 16 6 

 1-7 

 19 

 42 

 1-5 

 15 

 1-9 

 105 

 0-84 

 0-84 

 3 4 

 10 

 10 

 115 

 29 



Malvaceae 



Gerauiaceae 





Lythrarieas 





Umbelliferae 



Rubiaceae 



Cornpositae 



Asclepiadeae 



ConYolyulacejE 



Scrophularineos 



Labiatae 



Verbenaceae 



Amarantaceae 



Chenopodiaceae 



Polvgonaceae 



Euphorbiacea3 



Urticaceae 



Irideae 



Liliacese , 



Cyperaceae 



Gramineae 



Filices 



8 - 25 

 29 



